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Stefan what kind of wood is number 3L? i would be interested in that one too if Hattori doesn't snap it up.

That's koa. That wood comes in all kinds of shapes, colors, and figures. This one here will work for a 240 gyuto. It has a very nice 3-D effect, but it's more on the wild side, not the regular stripes that many people associate with koa. Hattorichop is getting a buckeye burl handle unless he changes his mind

I'll take that one and #2L as we have previously discussed. Let me know via PM what the total is and all of your pertinent paypal info. Thanks

Originally Posted by apicius9

That's koa. That wood comes in all kinds of shapes, colors, and figures. This one here will work for a 240 gyuto. It has a very nice 3-D effect, but it's more on the wild side, not the regular stripes that many people associate with koa. Hattorichop is getting a buckeye burl handle unless he changes his mind

I have a newbie question for you. All things being equal, is weight/balance the primary factor in determining which type of knife these "off the shelf" handles are suitable for? I know that there is a basic correlation between handle and blade length, but the choice of thickness is what I am wondering about.

I think that's a very complex issue. First, many people aer very tolerant to changes in balance or since most knives are blade heavy, they don't mind a slightly heavier handle to make it more balanced. There are personal preferences for length or thickness that may be more important for some than balance issues. My personal approach is to have an approximate length as a fixed variable, and then consider the materials (e.g. some stabilized woods are heavier than others) and the thickness (especially the 'height' of the handle) when I make a recommendation for a knife that could match the handle. So, these recommentdations are very individual, and people may be happy with doing it differently, but I keep hearing from dave that I have a decent eye for the matches. And I do my best to talk people out of buying a handle if I have strong feelings that they would be a bad match. So, in the end it's about balancing a number of variables and hoping to come out with a good match.

And once you have mastered these skills, you then have to figure out a completely different set of parameters for western style handles, right?

Originally Posted by apicius9

I think that's a very complex issue. First, many people aer very tolerant to changes in balance or since most knives are blade heavy, they don't mind a slightly heavier handle to make it more balanced. There are personal preferences for length or thickness that may be more important for some than balance issues. My personal approach is to have an approximate length as a fixed variable, and then consider the materials (e.g. some stabilized woods are heavier than others) and the thickness (especially the 'height' of the handle) when I make a recommendation for a knife that could match the handle. So, these recommentdations are very individual, and people may be happy with doing it differently, but I keep hearing from dave that I have a decent eye for the matches. And I do my best to talk people out of buying a handle if I have strong feelings that they would be a bad match. So, in the end it's about balancing a number of variables and hoping to come out with a good match.

5. blackwood, horn ferrule, jasper spacer and color coordinated red & white mammoth tooth end cap. for a smaller deba or a smaller gyuto if you don't mind that it is a little bit on the stubby sideP1010892 by mgapicius, on Flickr

Stefan

Would it work with a 6" deba?

“Though I could not caution all, I still might warn a few; Don’t lend your hand to raise no flag atop no ship of fools.” Robert Hunter

If I had a back log of handles to make like you I'm sure I'd get a bit confused as well.
Any idea on how many handles you would likely produce in a year?

There is a gap between how many I want to produce and how many I do produce. I am a very bad business man, and never much looked at it from that angle, but I came to realize that at my current prices I have to make about 120 per year to break even (and that is not fully counting my wood addiction expenses...). Last year I did not get to even half of that number.

Originally Posted by ecchef

Would it work with a 6" deba?

I think it would. I find it a touch stocky for a thinner knife unless you have larger hands, but a small deba should work.

Originally Posted by kalaeb

How large do you generally drill your tang pilot hole?

I try to keep the pilot hole - or better: slot - small enough to accommodate thinner tangs (something like < 1/8" x 3/8") unless it is a larger handle that will need a large knife anyway. I have to admit, I don't spend much time on making the slots look pretty because they will be filed open to match the tang anyway. The inside of the handle is drilled a bit oversized because sometimes the tangs are twisted, bent etc. That's the advantage if you have a new knife and a handle in front of you, you can make a perfect match. Since I often don't know the exact size and shape of the tang, drilling it oversized seems like the best solution.